The Vandals, who finished fifth in the Tri-Valley Conference West, scored twice in the top of the first inning and twice in the second to build a 4-0 lead, and Mudry (9-5) allowed only a single run in the fourth.

"Brandon did a marvelous job and made those four runs stand for us today," DeBeau said, adding that sophomore Dustin DeBeau, his son, was the catcher for Mudry.

"All day long, they never looked at me to call a pitch. Brandon hit his spots really well, never blinking an eye," Dave DeBeau said.

Merrill senior leftfielder Josh Draves, who leads the team with a .471 average, put the Vandals up 2-0 with a two-run double with two outs in the first, following a single by Dustin DeBeau and a walk to Jimmy Schoof.

In the second inning, Travis Clark led off with a double and Calib Stewart followed with an RBI double. With one out, Stewart stole third and then scored on Phil Pierce's groundout to make it 4-0.

Frankfort then pulled starter Cameron MacArthur after the second inning and brought in ace Kyle Zimmerman, who shut out the Vandals on one hit with 11 strikeouts over the final five innings. Zimmerman will pitch at Wayne State next year.

"After we got our four runs, I guess they decided they were going to put their best guy in," Dave DeBeau said of Frankfort. "I think they were looking past us a little bit (to the championship game)."

Mudry, meanwhile, got tougher as the game went on, allowing only two singles and a walk in the final three innings.

After making seven errors in Tuesday's quarterfinal win, the Vandals committed none on Friday.

Dave DeBeau said he and assistant coach Rod Kitzmiller took the team over to Morrison Field on Thursday evening just to get the players used to it. He added that Mudry, Dustin DeBeau and Zach Kitzmiller actually played at Bailey Park a year ago with a travel team that Dave DeBeau was coaching.

Dave DeBeau estimated that around 400 Merrill fans made the trip to Battle Creek to watch the Vandals, including a school bus full of fans.

"(The bus) was a surprise to us; we didn't know it was coming," he said. "That was a good shot in the arm for us.

"When we got done, all our fans swarmed us, which is an awesome feeling," Dave DeBeau added. "Everybody was congratulating and hugging all the kids. That means a ton to these kids."

Dave DeBeau said that Schoof and Zach Kitzmiller, who will be the pitcher and catcher today against Grosse Pointe Woods Liggett, were able to watch part of the Liggett/Beal City game after Merrill's game was done.

"Jimmy and Zach got to see most of their hitters," Dave DeBeau said of Liggett. "They think they've got a good game plan."

Dave DeBeau expects a great game today.

"They're just playing with a lot of confidence," he said of his team. "It doesn't matter who we play -- the guys say to me, 'Hey coach, we're going to give them a heck of a game.' ... I think it'll be a fun day."